Recently, two men walked into our clinic without an appointment. They both were new to the United States, uninsured, and unsure how to navigate the US healthcare system. English was not their first language, so we connected with them using interpreter services to ensure they were truly heard and understood.
Before arriving at Fenway, they had been turned away from several other healthcare facilities that couldn’t help them. Someone finally told them, “Try Fenway.”
One of the men was living with HIV and was about to run out of his medications. The other was taking PrEP and was also close to running out. Both needed care urgently.
The patient on PrEP was seen through our walk-in Sexual Health Clinic the very same day. He was enrolled in Health Safety Net coverage on the spot, had all required PrEP labs completed at no cost, and received PrEP within 24 hours.
The patient living with HIV required immediate more complex care. He was quickly scheduled with one of our HIV care providers, received a full clinical evaluation and comprehensive lab work at no cost, and was set up for close follow-up. During his visit, it became clear that the medication regimen he had been piecing together over several years, across multiple clinicians was no longer a complete or appropriate HIV treatment regimen.
With a same-day expert consult this was identified immediately and a plan was put in motion to transition him to the right treatment safely and thoughtfully.
This is what it means to build systems that work, not just when everything goes according to plan, but especially when it doesn’t. What stands out in this story is not just that we helped two people in need. It’s that we were ready. Ready with walk-in access. Ready with interpreter services. Ready with financial coverage pathways. Ready with clinical expertise. Ready with compassion.
Ready to care for our community.